Who Will Be the Next Top-100 Prospect for the Minnesota Twins?

[Jamie Cameron]

The Twins had three prospects ascend industry Top 100 lists in 2024, giving a huge boost to their minor league system. Who are the next candidates to ascend to top 100 prospect status?

Image courtesy of John Vittas (Connor Prielipp) & William Parmeter (Kaelen Culpepper, Brandon Winokur)

The Twins farm system had remarkable success in 2024. For a drafting and development organization, prospects taking significant leaps forward in their development is crucial to sustain minor-league depth and buoy a MLB roster trying to compete for the playoffs. 

Three Twins prospects ascended to Top 100 global prospect status with their 2024 performances. David Festa (who was likely a top 125 name entering 2024) entered and graduated. Zebby Matthews’ remarkable MiLB season started in Cedar Rapids and ended on the Twins roster. Finally Luke Keaschall, the Twins second round pick in 2023, hit his way into a top 75 spot on most industry lists.

Who are the next most likely candidates to take a step forward and become Top 100 prospects? Let’s dig in.

Connor Prielipp, LHP, 23, High A Cedar Rapids
Prielipp worked his way back from his second TJ surgery in 2024. While health has been a question mark, his stuff has not. In eight starts (on strict pitch counts) in 2024, he struck out 42.2% of hitters at Cedar Rapids (14.77 per 9) and walked just 8.4% (2.95 per 9). Prielipp relied on a fastball up to 96 mph, a diabolical slider that he routinely generates more than 3,000rpms on, and an under-discussed changeup that has a ton of horizontal break (16.1 average in the very small samples size we have access to). All this while learning to pitch all over again.

Prielipp will likely start in 2025 at Double-A. There will be peaks and valleys as he continues to build his pitch count. It’s possible he might need to add a fourth pitch down the line to continue to start. Prielipp has some of the best stuff in the Twins organization. A clean bill of health may result in him rocketing up rankings in 2025.

Kaelen Culpepper, SS, 21, High A Cedar Rapids
If you were handicapping this race, Culpepper is probably the safest pick. A college bat with a solid track record from a good conference who checked the initial boxes in professional baseball. 

Culpepper made short work of Fort Myers. He didn’t swing and miss at a pitch once in nine games at Fort Myers, hitting .297/.366/.541 (.907) with five extra base hits in his stint in the Florida State League. Culpepper slowed down significantly at Cedar Rapids, which I’m putting down to the grind of his longest ever baseball season. Twins personnel raved about his defense and preparation. He’ll start 2025 at Cedar Rapids with a chance, like Luke Keaschall before him, to kick on to Wichita with a strong opening to the season.

Dasan Hill, LHP, 18, Yet to Debut
This is a bold take, admittedly, for a player who hasn’t thrown a pitch in professional baseball. Clearly, with prep arms, risk is extreme and variance is the range of possible outcomes is wide, but you can connect the dots here.

The Twins selected Hill 69th overall in 2024 in a class deep with diverse prep arms. He’s been up to 97 mph with his fastball. In his slider and curveball, he has two distinct breaking pitches (breakers often blur together in prep arms), and he’s shown feel for a changeup. In their pre-draft scouting report, FanGraphs described Hill as having "a feel for location uncommonly good for a pitcher his size and age." Incidentally, they ranked him as the 24th best prospect in the entire class. All of this is packed into a frame that’s 6’5" and 175 pounds. This is a profile that’s easy to dream on.

Brandon Winokur, 19, Low A Fort Myers
Winokur was the ultimate lottery ticket when the Twins drafted him in the third round in 2023. A ridiculous frame (6’6", 210) and level of athleticism, also incredibly raw. In spite of this, he held his own in the FCL in his age-19 season in 2024, hitting .249/.327/.434 (.761) while popping 14 home runs. There’s plenty of warts to Winokur’s profile; contact issues and a lot of chase, so the hit tool is going to be the question. It’s hard not to have your interest piqued by a 90th percentile exit velocity of 104.6 mph, though (fifth-best among qualified hitters in A-ball). Winokur excelled at the end of the season, hitting .277/.327/.543 in August with 12 extra base hits in 24 games. He’ll likely start 2025 at Cedar Rapids as a 20-year old.

Honorable Mentions
There are so many other intriguing prospects in the Twins system, I’d be remiss not to mention some additional names in the ‘honorable mentions’ category. Any of the college bats (DeBarge, Amick) drafted early are solid candidates if they take off. Charlee Soto has age and incredible stuff on his side. If you want longer shot lottery tickets, Yasser Mercedes, Eduardo Beltre, and Daiber De Los Santos are worth a flier, all tools, athleticism (and good performances) with a long road ahead. There’s also the most likely outcome, it’s a name I didn’t mention here (CJ Culpepper?), so submit your guesses and rationale in the comments.

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[Twinsfan#2]

Andrew Morris

[Whitey333]

Always interesting these prospects.  Great article!  But the reality is almost all of those "can't miss" prospe ts won't make it.  It's the nature of the beast so to speak.  Most prospects are way over rated and over hyped.  Several of the prospects that played for the Twins this year only proved they are not ready for the majors.  It's always interesting to read about future prospects but it's all over blown.  But a great article and well researched.  Thank you.

[Jamie Cameron]

53 minutes ago, Twinsfan#2 said:

Andrew Morris

So I agree with you, he's the most likely candidate. The reason I left him off was he's close to debut. Figured he might debut before folks catch up and rank him in that 75-99 chunk of players (which is what almost happened to Festa). Good shout though!

[Otaknam]

Glad to see Conner Prielipp on this list. The Twins really need him to progress into a frontline starter. They have a lot of mid rotation starters at both the ML and MiL level, but no real ace, and an ace is a necessity to be a real playoff contender. 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

I needed this optimistic article on this Monday as the baseball playoffs continue without the Twins.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

Culpepper is the most likely.  He was a high draft pick and performed well,  especially if continues to do well as goes up to higher levels.  Priellip will be dinged by health concerns.  Even still his stuff is very very good.   

Winokur and Dasan Hill have the highest ceilings.  Winokur at the end of the season was really piling on the stats.  You could have 2 elite outfielders at the same time, with Winokur and Jenkins.   Hill is a lefty with a lot of projection - but effectively could be 6'5" Priellip.  Extremely high spin,  Velocity is in the 93 range,  if that gets up to 96 to 97,  You have an extremely dangerous weapon with likely great extension coming from a lefty.  

[jmlease1]

I think it's Soto. He's got great stuff, a projectable frame, and he's already shown flashes. He's also young enough for prospect hounds to project all of their hopes and dreams upon, along with being picked high enough to add some pedigree sheen to his profile.

Prielipp is incredibly talented, but the injury history is a huge red flag for these kinds of lists, specially combined with his age and the fact that he's likely up in AA. He's already 23 with only 30 professional innings. Most of the people doing lists like this prioritize projection and at 24 in AA they're already writing him off into the bullpen, and they don't put very many bullpen arms into a Top 100 prospect list.

Culpepper is the next best bet, IMHO. He did great at Ft. Myers out the gate and still competed at Cedar Rapids. Jumping all the way up to high A in your draft year is impressive, even from a college player. 

[DJL44]

51 minutes ago, Otaknam said:

Glad to see Conner Prielipp on this list. The Twins really need him to progress into a frontline starter. They have a lot of mid rotation starters at both the ML and MiL level, but no real ace, and an ace is a necessity to be a real playoff contender. 

I think Prielipp is a reliever. I want him to go all out 70 innings a year in leveraged situations. I don't think his arm survives the physical demands of the rotation.

[nicksaviking]

1 hour ago, Jamie Cameron said:

So I agree with you, he's the most likely candidate. The reason I left him off was he's close to debut. Figured he might debut before folks catch up and rank him in that 75-99 chunk of players (which is what almost happened to Festa). Good shout though!

That would be great, but SWR, Festa and Matthews are ahead of him. While it's possible they move Paddock, the MO of this club is to acquire another cellar tier starter like Bundy, Archer or DeSclafani along with a below cellar grade AAAA starter to stash in St. Paul. If he's higher than 8th in the rotation pecking order come April I'll be shocked.

[Jamie Cameron]

1 minute ago, nicksaviking said:

That would be great, but SWR, Festa and Matthews are ahead of him. While it's possible they move Paddock, the MO of this club is to acquire another cellar tier starter like Bundy, Archer or DeSclafani along with a below cellar grade AAAA starter to stash in St. Paul. If he's higher than 8th in the rotation pecking order come April I'll be shocked.

Agree with all of that, and, we know injuries, trades, and unexpected things will happen. No one would have called SWR pitching an entire season in MLB in 2024, for instance.

[LambchoP]

How about Canterino? He sounds very similar to Prelipp. Insane stuff, but with injury and durability concerns. I say get both of them healthy, and try them out as relief pitchers. They both K about 40 percent of batters, if they can keep that up into the upper levels they could be legit late inning weapons for the big league club.

[DocBauer]

I think Soto is more than an honorable mention.

Hard to argue against Prielipp if he's healthy.

If he makes a little better contact this year, chases a little less, I can absolutely see Winokur as a top 100. 

Based on 2023 and a strong partial 2024, I can see Cory Lewis jumping in to the top 100 if his velocity ticks up a couple notches.

[Fatbat]

I would not be surprised to see both Culpeppers in the 70-99 range when the new top 100 comes out.  Winoker will probably be fringe outside the bubble due to his K rate but he was a late season monster so he might sneak in.  Raya is also a slight possibily to hit the top 100 after his AAA debut and his young age.  
Whats really awesome is that we get to discuss a dozen prospects as potential top100 list guys after we already have guys in the top 30 and recent graduates from the top 30!

[Rufus]

People call the Pohlads cheap, but I like the path the organization is on,  putting resources into developing talent within the organization and resisting going after 30 something big dollar free agents.  I hope the new owner(s) stay on this track.  The next step is to get these players to live up to their potential once they hit the big team.  So far they have regressed once they have... would a change of managerial philosophy help?   The Pohlads have put money into the organization,  just just like any boss they need their employees to do their jobs

[FlyingFinn]

3 hours ago, Twinsfan#2 said:

Andrew Morris

To answer the question of the article, you are absolutely correct.

Canterino and Lewis are interesting. If either is great and healthy, they could jump to the Twins and accumulate enough time, that they graduate before the top 100 sites get to move them up into that list (I actually forget how fast someone can graduate).

I agree with some above, Soto's stuff at the end of the year should really impress people about his potential and he would also be my choice to be the next one (after Morris) to hit a top 100 list.

[tony&rodney]

The most interesting player to watch for me was Winokur. He is several years away with plenty of skills to polish still before he is ready for the highest level of baseball.

Still, the athleticism is there. Winokur plays good defense in either the outfield or infield with quickness and an arm to make plays. Yes, he can improve but the reflexes are a gift. At the plate, Winokur has a good eye but gets impatient like a young guy, because he is young and inexperienced. When he learns to stay more within himself and channel his swing more expertly, we can expect some strong results. Lastly, Winokur is a threat on the bases, very aggressive in stealing and on advancing the extra base.

I'm looking forward to see how the lanky kid fares in Cedar Rapids next season. I do believe he will need more time than some other players to refine his skills. 

[bean5302]

4 hours ago, LambchoP said:

How about Canterino? He sounds very similar to Prelipp. Insane stuff, but with injury and durability concerns. I say get both of them healthy, and try them out as relief pitchers. They both K about 40 percent of batters, if they can keep that up into the upper levels they could be legit late inning weapons for the big league club.

Canterino is at the razors edge of career over right now. Highly likely to be DFA'd off the 40 man, and now entering his age 27 season, the chances he makes a top 100 list is zero. If Canterino manages to make it off the injured list (big if), he'll undoubtedly be a bullpen arm for the Twins as he only has a single option left.

Prielipp is a little questionable at this point as he'll be taking the ball as a 24 year old prospect in 2025. Still, Prielipp won't be eligible for Rule 5 until next December so he still has some legit prospect status. I'd expect him to start the year off in AA, and if he absolutely dominates, he could find himself on a mid year top 100 list.

[bean5302]

4 hours ago, Rufus said:

People call the Pohlads cheap, but I like the path the organization is on,  putting resources into developing talent within the organization and resisting going after 30 something big dollar free agents.  I hope the new owner(s) stay on this track.  The next step is to get these players to live up to their potential once they hit the big team.  So far they have regressed once they have... would a change of managerial philosophy help?   The Pohlads have put money into the organization,  just just like any boss they need their employees to do their jobs

I'm not as much of a fan of the missing the playoffs direction. Zebby Matthews was arguably the best pitcher in all of MiLB last year, soared into basically the top 50 MLB prospect range and then was destroyed at the MLB level. Winning World Series' > Winning prospect rankings.

[jmlease1]

4 hours ago, Rufus said:

People call the Pohlads cheap, but I like the path the organization is on,  putting resources into developing talent within the organization and resisting going after 30 something big dollar free agents.  I hope the new owner(s) stay on this track.  The next step is to get these players to live up to their potential once they hit the big team.  So far they have regressed once they have... would a change of managerial philosophy help?   The Pohlads have put money into the organization,  just just like any boss they need their employees to do their jobs

The Pohlads are cheap. They've invested in some areas of the farm system, but where exactly have they done more than the average in terms of spending resources on their farm system? Buying into the Saints to bring them into the farm system doesn't really count.

Falvey has done a great job in terms of modernizing the farm system. but a lot of that is from setting a new directive for the system and hiring the right people...not necessarily because they're spending additional money. 

[Mike Sixel]

Culpepper and Winokur (sp?) are my top bets to move up earlier. 

I wish Prielipp was a RP on the Twins next year, since they'll limit his innings....put him on the Liriano plan...

[mikelink45]

Was Hill added just to see if we were reading the entire article?

[tony&rodney]

3 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

Was Hill added just to see if we were reading the entire article?

We have not had a chance to see Dasan Hill pitch but he was all over blogs among the top prep arms available in last summer's draft. I got nothing to say about him because i haven't seen him, yet I have thought that  hope he pitches for Ft. Myers next year so i can see him pitch.

[Jamie Cameron]

23 hours ago, LambchoP said:

How about Canterino? He sounds very similar to Prelipp. Insane stuff, but with injury and durability concerns. I say get both of them healthy, and try them out as relief pitchers. They both K about 40 percent of batters, if they can keep that up into the upper levels they could be legit late inning weapons for the big league club.

Age and being a sure fire reliever are why I didn't consider him, which is not to say he can't make a big impact, because he sure can if he can stay healthy.

[Jamie Cameron]

17 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

Was Hill added just to see if we were reading the entire article?

:) Stand by what I said in the write up. Of course he's a risky add, but he's the caliber of arm talent that makes industry lists (assuming health and strong performance).

[mark sills]

Andrew Morris first Prelipp 2nd

[twinstalker]

LOL at K. Culpepper.  Doubt it.

The problem with Lewis and Morris is they may be up before lists fully realize how good they are, and their first months debuts are likely to be less than wonderful as they gain a foothold and surpass 50 ip.

Eeles might be in a similar position.

I'd say Soto has an outside chance.  The hype is there, so great performance will get recognized in this way.

[purplesoldier4u]

On 10/14/2024 at 2:19 PM, bean5302 said:

I'm not as much of a fan of the missing the playoffs direction. Zebby Matthews was arguably the best pitcher in all of MiLB last year, soared into basically the top 50 MLB prospect range and then was destroyed at the MLB level. Winning World Series' > Winning prospect rankings.

We might be more of Zebby and Festa than we want to in 2025.

[Danchat]

On 10/14/2024 at 2:21 PM, jmlease1 said:

The Pohlads are cheap. They've invested in some areas of the farm system, but where exactly have they done more than the average in terms of spending resources on their farm system? Buying into the Saints to bring them into the farm system doesn't really count.

Falvey has done a great job in terms of modernizing the farm system. but a lot of that is from setting a new directive for the system and hiring the right people...not necessarily because they're spending additional money. 

I recall hearing that they have one of the bigger analytic departments on payroll, for what it's worth.

[Major League Ready]

On 10/14/2024 at 2:21 PM, jmlease1 said:

The Pohlads are cheap. They've invested in some areas of the farm system, but where exactly have they done more than the average in terms of spending resources on their farm system? Buying into the Saints to bring them into the farm system doesn't really count.

Falvey has done a great job in terms of modernizing the farm system. but a lot of that is from setting a new directive for the system and hiring the right people...not necessarily because they're spending additional money. 

Yet their farm system is ranked as high as #2.  Whatever it is they have done, it seems to be working quite well!